Description

This route follows the 1000 foot arete of the Dreadnought from Skunk Canyon all the way to its summit behind the Backporch. The views of the rocks on the North side of Skunk Canyon and the West face of the Backporch are hard to beat.

Take the Skunk Canyon approach. Once you reach the Dreadnought hike the steep gully between its East Face and Achean Pronouncement to where the rock becomes well-defined and less licheny (roughly 300 feet).

Look for a small, left-facing dihedral with a couple of bushes in it. This is the start of the route.

Climb up the dihedral, and protect in a crack at its bottom, make it past the first bush, and exit to the right of the dihedral or continue up a through above the dihedral. Either way, reach the arete, and set up your first belay.

From here, the route follows the arete (left) all the way to either of the East or West summits. The 5.5 rating is for the first pitch, and the arete traverse is considerably easier but mostly unprotected and sometimes licheny.

Along the way you will make it past a small tree partially blocking the arete and onto a good ledge where you can rest before tackling the final steeper section.

At the foot of the summit blocks, there is a large ledge. You can do an easy but exposed 40 foot scramble to either summit from here.

Descent: Scramble back down to the ledge below the sumit blocks and climb South down a hole between them. Scramble down West and South via an alleyway that will deposit you below the South side of the Dreadnought. Hike East to reach the Porch Alley trail.

The description here, as well as the one in the new Haas Flatirons guidebook, recommends beginning with the dihedral thing above the beginning of the ridge. However, I quickly tired of bushwhacking uphill and instead climbed from the lowest spot on the rock up and left to a fern growing in the base of a splitter tight fists (#3.5 Friends) crack. I followed the crack to a roof and pulled through at about 5.6 or 5.7, then followed features to the arete.

The crack/roof climbing was a nice start to the route, and though the rock isn't especially clean, the movement was excellent. Climbing this variation with gear you're probably want a couple-three #3 Camalots or #3.5 Friends in addition to a light rack for protection, as the crack, though easy, is sustained in width for a long stretch.

Although getting started is a bit of a thrunch, climbing on the ridge is great. I crashed uphill and did some face climbing to get onto the rib proper and had a wonderful time. I don't know how it might go with a rope and partner, but protection and belays looked sparce. Lots of downed trees along Porch Alley on the descent but nothing terminal. Another recommended Roach classic (much better than Angel's Way).